


Bein' Friends

by Korema



Category: Mother 2: Gyiyg no Gyakushuu | EarthBound
Genre: Awkward Dates, By like a month, Canon Compliant, Dialogue Heavy, Dinner, Inside jokes, Jeff Thinks Too Much, M/M, Moonside (Mother 2), Ness is Oblivious, Paula Polestar Sets Some Stuff on Fire, Poo was never taught to have tact, Post-Canon, Post-Game(s), because other than that we die like men, does posting snippets on discord as i write it count as a beta read, in a flashback, in which paula and poo conspire to get these dorks together using occasionally questionable means, it may be a nessjeff fic but paula is the real star of the show, mention of smash bros blink and youll miss it, mostly dialogue actually, paula and poo are supportive as fuck, write more platonic friendships in ship fics cowards
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-04
Updated: 2020-12-04
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:48:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23994034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Korema/pseuds/Korema
Summary: There was a pause as the children started to eat their food.Then Poo broke it with a nonchalant rhetorical question."So. Jeff, huh?"Ness nearly choked on his steak.----In which Paula and Poo decide to help Ness and Jeff get together through a unique method involving telepathy, awkward breakfast conversations, and occasional arson. Takes place a month post-canon, the gang is still traveling together to finish off the last of the strange creatures around Eagleland.
Relationships: Jeff Andonuts/Ness, Ness & Paula Polestar & Poo & Jeff Andonuts
Comments: 10
Kudos: 32





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Shout-out to Solfeather for being epic and also technically beta reading kinda sorta??

Ness, Paula, Jeff, and Poo woke up at 8:00 AM. The hotel dining area was near-empty this late in the morning, and Ness only barely managed to get his precious steak from the buffet. Paula had grabbed Jeff and insisted she had to show him a diner nearby, and he had eventually relented to her tugging his sleeve and pulling him out the door. 

Ness greeted Poo with a hearty smile. He smiled back. "Good morning, Ness."

"Good morning! Whatcha gonna have for breakfast?"

"I feast not on material pleasures, but on meditative reflection."

"Want me to grab you an omelette?"

"That'd be cool, yes."

Ness sat down, and Poo telekinetically lowered himself into to the seat across from him. The prince began picking at the omelette with a fork, distaste evident in his expression.

There was a pause as the children started to eat their food.

Then Poo broke it with a nonchalant rhetorical question.

"So. Jeff, huh?"

Ness nearly choked on his steak, but quickly collected himself and continued to talk (with his mouth full). "Wh-what about Jeff?" Twisting strands of his own PSI Freeze through his fingers, Poo replied, "What are your thoughts on him?

Ness frowned. "You're gonna waste PP like that, Poo...."

"Worry not. I have PSI Caramels. But you did not answer the question."

"He--he's really cool. And even though he doesn't have PSI like you, me, and Paula, he's really smart; you shouldn't underestimate him. Besides, have you seen him with a multi-bottle rocket?"

Poo shuddered. "Jeff scares me when he uses those."

Ness grinned. "He scares all of us, I think."

 _Why'd he ask me that?_ Ness wondered, taking a generous forkful of steak. As if reading his mind ( _Which he could actually be doing,_ Ness reminded himself) Poo spoke again. "I ask because you seem rather enamored with him as of late."

"....huh?"

"You appear to have butterflies in your stomach following extended exposure to him."

"Huh???"

"Your PSI acts up when you are around him. You can never sit still while he's away."

"Poo, you aren't making any sense."

"You seem pretty gay."

Ness turned about as red as his ballcap. Poo quietly excused himself, leaving the Eaglelander to stare at his empty plate with longing that was definitely for more than steak.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> wait theres supposed to be a chaPTER SUMMARY?? I WAS NOT INFORMED OF THIS SKJDASHJJHDJAS

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> holy cow i posted the first chapter yesterday and there are already two comments
> 
> im pretty surprised there isnt more nessjeff content, but im even *more* surprised that there's still apparently enough to keep people watching the tag!! id like to point out that im not exclusively a nessjeff shipper, i multiship the hell out of this game, so keep an eye out for other content once this fic is over. with that said, id rather not link my discord until im a bit further into the fic and the AO3 community in general, but im flattered that yall wanna chat!! 
> 
> finally, id like to mention that i have the first couple of chapters drafted, but it takes me a bit to get it written out for the final version, so update schedules may or may not be wonky.

The diner that Paula dragged Jeff into was far from empty, but their food came surprisingly soon after they ordered. It wasn't anything fancy -- the closest thing to a decoration was a wet floor sign on the ground, surrounded by floor that was clearly quite dry. 

Jeff took note of the girl's overly-keen expression and concluded that she was trying to read his mind.

**_Get out, Paula._ **

It was an inside joke of sorts -- Paula would try to startle him telepathically, Jeff would think of a response, and they'd end up having a casual mental conversation. The _joke_ , of course, was other people's reactions to seeing a conversation they couldn't hear -- Paula's intense concentration, followed by seemingly unprompted laughter on both ends, her elbowing him for no apparent reason, him rolling his eyes or groaning out loud. 

**_What's up, Jeff? Couldn't sleep last night?_ **

Jeff ignored her and took a bite of his sandwich. 

_**Sounds riveting. Whatcha thinkin' about? Cure for zombification? Sustainable quantum nitrogen for Saturns Valley?** _

The boy looked at her tiredly and responded.

_**Paula, that isn't even a thing. You can't just put together random words I've said and hope it's a scientific concept.** _

The girl pouted, and Jeff continued to eat. 

_**Alright, so maybe I'm not a scientist.** _

**_Clearly._ **

**_But I do know more than you think I do._ **

**_Paula, I hate when you do this. Get to the point already._ **

She smiled.

**_You're thinking about him, aren't you? Ness?_ **

Paula grabbed her hot cocoa and, without taking her eyes off Jeff, downed it all in one go. 

Jeff turned to face the girl. Clearly, whoever had taught Ness and Poo not to intrude on people's thoughts without permission had completely forgotten to teach such etiquette to Paula.

**_Have I ever told you how insufferable you are?_ **

**_Come on, I've definitely earned the right to pry. You'd be dead without me and you know it._ **

**_You would still be trapped in the Threed Graveyard without me! We're even!_ **

Paula shrugged.

**_Fair enough._ **

Jeff took another bite of his food. Leaning forward, Paula added:

**_I can help, you know._ **

**_Paula, I'd appreciate it if you did anything that_ wasn't _that._**

To Jeff's surprise, Paula suddenly stopped smirking. She stared at the wet floor sign on the dry ground, her expression vacant. After an uncomfortable silence, she shared her prediction in her uniquely jumbled way.

**_Get your laser out._ **

**_What?_ **

**_I'm gonna set a booth on fire. Crazed Sign._ **

**_You're gonna--_ **

Jeff didn't get to finish. The wet floor sign flew directly into his face just as Paula shielded the hit. He acted quickly, pulling out his weapon and shooting a beam at the creature. Paula used a PSI Fire attack, which destroyed the sign and triggered a smoke detector, causing water to rain down from above. 

The children looked at each other blankly, then at the floor (which was, at long last, deserving of a wet floor sign) and, finally, at their fellow customers. 

Jeff grabbed Paula's arm and made a run for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i feel like i might have gone by too fast, but it's admittedly hard to write telepathy embedded into a sentence, so i couldn't do much in the way of actions to break the monotony. i swear i can write lol
> 
> could yall let me know how i should format telepathy? i want to make it easy on the eyes, but clearly distinct from the rest of the text


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Paula drops a bombshell while Ness gets the money to pay for the destruction she caused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick "intermission" of sorts, just to set up for the next chapter, which is going to be a lot longer. Stay tuned!

Ness groaned. As the group's leader, as well as the only one who kept cash on him (Poo refused to do so for fear it might tempt him to splurge on unnecessary goods), Ness was responsible for paying for their lodging, transportation, and, unfortunately, the many repairs that came with his team's unique abilities. Between Paula's extremely potent PSI powers, Poo's lack of tact, and Jeff's philosophy of "experiment first, ask questions later", Ness was honestly surprised his father kept sending money over. 

He slipped his ATM card into the slot as Paula leaned forward. Ness glanced over his shoulder suspiciously. 

"Paula, I'm not entering my PIN with you here."

"If I wanted your PIN I would just read your mind."

Ness looked at her strangely for a moment. Then the two of them burst into laughter. "You're a great friend, you know that?"

"Weird of you to point that out as I threaten to get your credit card information, but yes."

Ness laughed again. There was a pause as the boy finished his transaction and took back the card with the cash. He began to head out, but Paula grabbed his wrist in the doorway. 

"Ness."

He cocked an eyebrow. "What's up?"

"Are you available tomorrow? You don't have any Smash matches?"

He shook his head. "I have Wednesdays and weekends off."

"Good, because I made a reservation for you and Jeff at the Summers Grand Restaurant."

Ness froze. "What?"

"6:00 PM tomorrow."

"What??"

"Dress formal, don't take 'coffee' from strangers, I'll be nearby if you need me."

"Paula!"

"You can do this, Ness. I believe in you!"

"PAULA!"


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dinner date.

**_Sure are a lot of couples here._ **

**_Paula, I am going to take your frying pan and melt it down to make a wrench._ **

_**That's no way to thank me for reserving a table for you at a fancy restaurant.** _

He didn't respond, and there was an uncomfortable silence. Jeff shifted in his seat. 

Ness looked at the menu, running his finger down the margin until he found something that looked promising. "Kraken Soup? That sounds great, I love calamari!"

Jeff found it on his menu. "Yeah, I'll get that too."

A waitress came up to the table. "Have you young men figured out what you'd like to order?"

Ness smiled widely. "Kraken soup for both of us, please!"

She nodded. "Alright, that will be 1,296 dollars."

"What the--huh!?" Ness nearly fell out of his chair as Jeff raised an eyebrow. 

"648 for a bowl. 1296 for two bowls," the waitress explained patiently.

"Wow, this place really _is_ fancy." Ness looked down at his menu again, then perked up. "Hey, Jeff, would you mind sharing a bowl?"

Jeff covered his face with his menu. "Yeah, sure." he said in a small voice.

He looked out the window. Poo appeared deep in concentration. He took a moment to think about what that might mean, then peeked over at Ness from behind the menu. Sure enough, the boy's eyes were bright yellow -- although the others simply closed their eyes to make it less obvious, Ness' eyes would turn gold when using his PSI.

**_Paula, is Poo talking to Ness? Like....telepathically?_ **

She smiled. **_I told you I could help._ **

**_And I told you I'd rather you not do that._ **

**_Jeff, you focus too much on details._ **

And, as soon she cut off her link, Jeff felt another. The thing about telepathy, Jeff had realized soon after meeting his friends, was that each person using it had a different _kind_ of presence. Something Jeff couldn't really put into words that made each one's telepathy distinct from the others. Paula, for instance, gave the most obvious presence, her abilities being the strongest. Poo's was one that demanded respect, although he rarely used it for communication. And Ness....Ness just had a _Ness_ presence. Energetic. Cheerful. Friendly. Just like him. 

**_Hey, Jeff._ **

**_Yeah?_ **

**_Do you remember Moonside?_ **

**_Yeah._ ** It would be impossible to forget. Moonside was one of the most frightening experiences Jeff had gone through -- and that was including the fight against Giygas. He considered it more of a psychological horror, though -- Fourside's "flipside", the place where yes means no and everything has a neon glow. He remembered that was the day Paula got kidnapped -- Poo hadn't joined the team yet, so that left just him and Ness. 

He remembered the cold night spent in the Moonside Hotel, how he and Ness had made a tacit agreement not to use the second bed -- leaving it empty, as though Paula was still there. 

* * *

_Jeff grabbed Ness by the shoulder. "Ness, are you crying?" He turned his face away, but Jeff was quicker, and managed to tilt his head just in time to see his friend's face, shining with tears. He had never seen Ness at such a low point, save for his occasional bouts of homesickness._

_Jeff couldn't think of what to say._

_Nothing would be enough._

_Ness had known Paula the longest of the two, and was devastated as if his own sister had been kidnapped. Ness had rescued her from imprisonment by the cultists of Happy-Happy Village. They had spent days trapped underground in the zombie-infested Threed -- cold, dark, surrounded by the stench of death and decay. And, even having Paula as close of a friend as she was, his bond with the girl was nowhere near as close as Ness'._

_He took Ness by the hand. "Ness, come on. You need fresh air." Ness hesitated, then nodded weakly._

_The air of Moonside, just like everything else about it, was wrong. It was too warm, too cold, too humid, too dry, too little, too much. But, walking outside from the cold hotel onto the streets, Jeff realized what had set him off from the first time he walked out from the cafe. The temperature didn't change. No rush of fresh warm air, no breath of life into the vacant gazes of passerby._

_Hardly what one would call "fresh air"._

_Jeff took a multi-bottle rocket out of his bag. "Moonside has a really clear sky." he explained. "If I line these with the neon glowsticks from the cafe, it'll look like fireworks." Jeff didn't know how he had thought of this, why he had thought of it. He just knew that Ness needed something to take his mind off of the situation. And lighting bottle rockets to shoot into the sky was certainly something._

_After several minutes of setup, the rocket was ready for launch. Jeff filled it up and put it on the launcher. Moments later, seven neon streaks of light burst out from the launcher. He sat down next to Ness, who was mesmerized by the display. Jeff hadn't completely thought it through, his only real purpose in the launch being to cheer up his friend, and the fundamentals of rocketry had escaped him for a moment. Excess material weighed on the noses of the rockets, causing them to flip, drop, and, finally, crash, sending streaks of pale color bounding across the sky as the last of the rocket's fuel reflected the eerie light of the windless city._

_And, despite everything, it was beautiful._

* * *

**_I was thinking about it earlier and, I realized I really never thanked you for that bottle rocket thing. That was awesome._ **

Jeff tugged at his bowtie. **_It--it was nothing, really, I just--_ **

Ness' link broke off, startling the other boy. Jeff followed Ness' gaze to the waitress, carrying a _huge_ bowl of soup to the table. She removed the lid from the top of the bowl and smiled. "Enjoy."

Jeff was still blowing on a single spoonful of soup. Being from Winters, he was far easier to overheat -- their travels had left him a victim of more sunburn and tan lines than he ever thought he would have to deal with. "How did you already swallow a spoonful?? It's piping hot."

Ness laughed. "Come on, Jeff, this is Summers! You gotta get in the Summers mood!" He grabbed a huge spoonful and downed it in one go. 

"Ness."

"Jeff."

" _Ness._ "

"Here comes the bottle rocket." said Ness with a laugh, sweeping the empty spoon at Jeff's face. Jeff made a strange noise. 

Silence.

Just two children staring at each other, each thinking about how ridiculous the other was being.

Just two children in a very adult-like silence.

Then Ness broke it. "Oh my god, you laughed."

"Did not."

Ness leaned forward to say something else, but the sudden motion caused the table's weight to shift, sending the bowl sliding towards the ground, with the soup inside quickly finding its way out. Before either of them had time to react, the bowl had shattered on the tiled floor. 

Several things happened at once. 

Ness burst into laughter, and Jeff looked around at the other clientele, trying to gauge whether or not they had noticed. (And, of course, they had.) Paula came rushing through the door yelling something about table manners. A waitress called for security, and within less than a minute the three were "escorted" from the Summers Grand Restaurant, and strictly barred from re-entry.

It was the highlight of Jeff's week, for sure.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Paula and Poo touch base. Another short intermission chapter.

"Poo."

"Hmm?"  
  
"The waitress is coming."

"Ah."

Paula put her menu down, and Poo did the same.  
  
"Have you children decided what you'd like to order?"  
  
Paula smiled. "A strawberry smoothie and a grilled cheese sandwich for me, please!"  
  
"Alright, and for you, young man?"

Poo looked the waitress dead in the eyes. "Nothing on this menu looks even remotely appetizing. I'll have a glass of water."

The woman's smile faltered briefly, but she quickly recovered. "O-Of course, sir." She walked off and the children sat in relative silence until Paula spoke up.

"So. Let's touch base."

Poo looked at her strangely for a moment. "What is there to touch base on? They already went on a date. I thought that was the plan." He gave a nod of thanks as the waitress returned with his water. 

"The thing is, as far as they're concerned, it _wasn't_ a date. Neither of them knows how the other feels, so to them it's nothing more than just....eating dinner together." Poo noted the frustration in her tone. He hummed thoughtfully, using a bit of PSI Freeze to create ice for his drink, then spoke. "If the problem is simply that they are unaware of each others' feelings, why don't you tell them?"

"Poo, have you _never_ watched a shitty rom-com before?"

Poo stayed silent and gave his companion a moment to realize what she was asking and to whom.

"....ah, right. Well, the thing is, they have to hear it from _each other_. It doesn't work otherwise!"

Poo frowned. "What do you mean, it 'doesn't work'?"

"I mean, hearing it from anyone else makes it harder for them to say it to each other." She thanked the waitress as her smoothie and sandwich arrived, and took a small bite of the latter.

"Well then, there's not much we can do except that which we have already been doing. Encouraging them."

"S'pose so. I know Ness does a lot better with moral support. He's almost at the point where he might be able to tell Jeff on his own, too; he just needs a little bit of courage."

"Well...." He gave her a pat on the shoulder. "If anyone can give Ness that sort of courage, it's you. I've seldom heard of people growing as close together as you two did in as little time as that."

Paula gave a small laugh as she finished her sandwich. "That says more about Ness than it does about me, though. He's close with _everyone_ he meets."

"Either way, I hardly need to wish you good luck with encouraging him." He looked to the side as she began on her smoothie. "You're very much capable of giving pep talks."

"Poo, flattery gets you nowhere."

"In that case, I suppose I should add that the slurping noises you make when you drink those smoothies are absolutely disgusting."

Paula blew a raspberry at him, but said nothing more.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You can call me Pollyanna,  
> Say I'm crazy as a loon,  
> I believe in silver linings  
> And that's why I believe in you!"
> 
> \- Pollyanna
> 
> \----
> 
> Paula gives Ness a pep talk.

"Paula, I can pack on my own, you know. I barely unpacked this time anyway."

"You're always losing your stuff."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Then where's your yo-yo?"

"My yo-yo....? My...." He turned sharply. "PAULA!!"

Paula burst into laughter and unzipped her backpack, causing the yo-yo to roll right out. Ness snatched it and swung it at her, jerking the string back at a millimeter left to impact. "That's the fourth time."

"Fifth."

"That doesn't make it any better!"

They were the last two in the room; Jeff and Poo had already gone downstairs to the hotel lobby, and Paula was helping Ness pack his things.

_**So, when are you gonna tell him?** _ Paula tied her favorite ribbon onto her hair, smiling with satisfaction at her reflection in the mirror.

Ness covered his face with his hands, remaining silent for a few moments before looking at Paula.  _**I—I don't....maybe now's not a good time. I mean, what if he thinks I'm weird? And then he has to—** _

_**Ness, all of us think you're weird. That's one of your best qualities.** _

_**No, I mean like—** _

_**Ness.** _ She turned to face the boy.  _**You can do this.** _

_**Paula, you don't know that.** _

She snapped her fingers, and a burst of flame came rushing towards Ness.  _**Think fast!** _

His hand shot out instinctively. "PSI Shield!" The flame was absorbed into a web of hexagons.  _**What was that for?!** _

_**I'm proving a point. You didn't know I was gonna use PK Fire, but you blocked it anyway. I threw you a curveball out of nowhere, but you hit it out of the park!** _

_**So?** _

_**Ness, you're the one who beat Giygas! You're the one who led us to victory! If you can do that, with no preparation at all, I'm sure you can tell Jeff how you feel with enough preparation and Poo and I cheering you on!** _

_**Poo's in on this too!?** _

_**Ness, he literally flat-out said you were gay. As a statement, not a question.** _

Ness zipped up his backpack.  _**Why do you guys want me to tell Jeff about this so much?** _

_**Ness, we're your friends!** _

_**Yeah! Not my wedding planners!** _

Paula fanned herself with a cupcake wrapper in one hand, sighing dramatically as she propped her head up with the other.  _**You're already thinking about weddings, you're so far gone.** _ She gave him an amused smile. _**Jokes aside, you've faced things way scarier than this! Both of us have!** _

_**I....I'm not sure....do you really think....I mean....**_ He bit his lip.

She pumped her fist in the air.  _**C'mon! Pollyanna! We've seen things nobody could've dreamed about, Ness! We've seen talking stop signs, magic pencils, giant dinosaurs! If the world still has room for more miracles, then you'll do whatever you set your mind to!** _ She smiled, opening the door of the hotel room. "I believe in friends and laughter...."

He remembered the first time she had sung that song to him, when they were stranded together in Threed. At a moment when he thought hope was so far gone it was beginning to rot like all the other corpses down there, Paula sang a song of hopes and dreams and friendship. 

And here she was again, giving him confidence when he needed it most. 

Smiling, he put on his backpack and joined in. "And the wonders love can do...."

"I believe in songs and magic...." She put her arm around his shoulder as they began to walk downstairs. 

"That's why I believe in you!"


End file.
